Hunters of the Dusk by Darren Shan Read Free Book Online Page B

who she is?”
    He hesitated. “That is harder to explain. It might be best coming from her own lips. Evanna tells different people different things. She might not object to you knowing the truth — but then again, she might.”
    “Is she an inventor?” I pressed. Mr. Crepsley owned a collection of pots and pans that folded up into tiny bundles, making them easier to carry. He’d told me that Evanna had made them.
    “She sometimes invents,” he said. “She is a woman of many talents. Much of her time is spent breeding frogs.”
    I blinked. “Excuse me?” I said.
    “It is her hobby. Some people breed horses, dogs, or cats. Evanna breeds frogs.”
    “How can she breed frogs?” I said with a snort. “You will find out.” Then he leaned forward and tapped my knee. “Whatever you say, do not call her a witch.”
    “Why would I call her a witch?” I asked. “Because she is one — sort of.”
    “We’re going to meet a
witch?
” Harkat snapped worriedly.
    “That troubles you?” Mr. Crepsley asked.
    “Sometimes in my dreams . . . there’s a witch. I’ve never seen her face — not clearly — and I’m not sure . . . if she’s good or bad. There are times when I run to her for help, and times . . . when I run away, afraid.”
    “You haven’t mentioned that before,” I said. Harkat’s smile was shaky. “With all the dragons, stakes, and shadow men . . . what’s one little witch?”
    The mention of dragons reminded me of something he’d said when we met Mr. Tiny. He’d called him “the dragon master.” I asked Harkat about this but he couldn’t remember saying it. “Although,” he mused, “I sometimes see Mr. Tiny in my dreams, riding the . . . backs of dragons. Once he tore the brain out of one and . . . tossed it at me. I reached to catch it but . . . woke before I could.”
    We thought about that image a long time. Vampires place a lot of importance on dreams. Many believe that dreams act as links to the past or future, and that much can be learned from them. But Harkat’s dreams didn’t seem to have any relation to reality, and in the end Mr. Crepsley and me dismissed them, rolled over, and slept. Harkat didn’t — he stayed awake, green eyes glowing faintly, putting off sleep as long as he could, avoiding the dragons, stakes, witches, and other dangers of his nightmares.

CHAPTER NINE
    O NE DUSK I AWOKE with a feeling of absolute comfort. As I stared up at a red, darkening sky, I tried to think why I felt so good. Then I realized — the itching had stopped. I lay still a few minutes, afraid it would return if I moved, but when I finally got to my feet, there wasn’t the slightest prickling sensation. Grinning, I headed for a small pond we’d camped by, to wet my throat.
    I lowered my face into the cool, clear water of the pond and drank deeply. As I was rising, I noticed an unfamiliar face in the reflecting surface of the water — a long-haired, bearded man. It was directly in front of me, which meant he must be standing right behind me — but I hadn’t heard anyone approach.
    Swiveling swiftly, my hand shot to the sword that I’d brought from Vampire Mountain. I had it halfway out of its scabbard before stopping, confused.
    There was no one there.
    I looked around for the shabby, bearded man, but he was nowhere to be seen. There were no nearby trees or rocks he could have ducked behind, and not even a vampire could have moved quickly enough to disappear so swiftly.
    I turned back toward the pond and looked into the water again. There he was! As clear and hairy as before, scowling up at me.
    I gave a yelp and jumped back from the water’s edge. Was the bearded man
in
the pond? If so, how was he breathing?
    Stepping forward, I locked gazes with the hairy man — he looked like a caveman — for the third time and smiled. He smiled back. “Hello,” I said. His lips moved when mine did, but silently. “My name’s Darren Shan.” Again his lips moved in time with mine. I was